Bolivia is the world’s third biggest cocaine producer, and the main supplier to Brazil.

The deal was signed after months of negotiations and repeated delays as Bolivia sought changes to the document.

Bolivian Interior Minister Wilfredo Chavez said Bolivia had insisted on respect for its sovereignty as well as for the traditional consumption of coca leaf, which is used for medicinal and ritual purposes.

Reminds me of one of my relatives, who died of alcoholism, and used to say “it’s for purely medicinal purposes” as he swigged down from a flask.